A nanny has revealed how she fell in love with her boss despite a 20 year age gap – and regularly gets mistaken for his daughter.
Krystle Romano, 29, met husband Ben, 49 when she was hired to look after his children as the family’s nanny in from Long Island, New York, in November 2014.
Then 23-years-old, Krystle quickly became a hit with the three kids. Ben, who was 43 at the time and had full custody of the children after his divorce, fell for her soon afterwards too and the pair wed in November 2017.
Now she’s gone from nanny to stepmother – and she’s only seven years older than her eldest stepchild.
The couple have become a TikTok sensation with their love story, which sounds like it’s straight from a romantic comedy, although they admit thousands of social media users regularly call Krystle a ‘gold digger’ and a ‘homewrecker’ for marrying her boss – even though he was divorced.
Krystle Romano, 29, met husband Ben, 49 when she was hired to look after his children as the family’s nanny in November 2014. They tied the knot in 2017, pictured
Krystle, who was a single-mother-of-one at the time, became a hit with Ben Children and eventually fell for their dad, pictured together with children Frankie, 22, Sal, 17, and Julianna, 19 and Krystle’s son Kashton
Ben – who is father to Frankie, 22, Julianna, 19, Sal, 17, from a previous relationship says: ‘Krystle has been mistaken for my daughter many, many times.
‘When we vacation together as a family or pose for a family portrait, people mistake Krystle for being one of my three daughters. It doesn’t bother me – I’m used to it now.
‘A lot of people on TikTok assume that I hired Krystle because she was pretty and I wanted to hook up with her or whatever but that’s not true at all.
‘When we met, she was 23 and I was 43 and we were in totally different places. Our love wasn’t planned.
Ben admitted he became attracted to Krystle after seeing her dressed up to go out, and said the attraction only grew from there
The nanny and her family have become a hit on TikTok, where they address the age gap between Krystle and Ben
‘Other people online call Krystle a gold digger and a homewrecker. But I didn’t have much money when I met her. I call Krystle my lucky charm because my business only really took off when we started dating.”
Krystle – who has a ten-year-old son Kashton from a previous relationship – says: ‘People on TikTok are always saying that Ben and I won’t last.
‘They tell me that he’ll start a relationship with the next nanny that comes along and that “you can’t turn a h*e into a housewife”.
‘But Ben and I have been together a long time. I guess people online are interested in us because the nanny becoming the stepmom is like a storyline out of a romantic comedy.
Seven years separate Sal, 17, Ben’s son from Kashton, ten, who is Krystle son from another relationship, pictured
Krystle, who started working for Ben nearly ten years ago, is now part of their milestones, like Julianna’s graduation, centre
The family love to dress up and go out together for special occasion. Krystle began working for Ben when Kashton was three, left
‘I love Ben’s kids like they were my own and they can always confide in me if they need.
‘His daughter, Julianna and I are soulmates. There’s only ten years between us so people often think we’re sisters.’
Krystle was 23-years-old when she was hired by 43-year old single dad, Ben in November 2014.
Businessman Ben says that Krystle was the worst nanny he’d ever had hired but she was loved by his children – and their relationship grew from there.
Krystle’s son Kadhtn has also become a part of the family. The couple, right, also address the controversy of how they met, as some have accused Krystle or being a gold-digger
The happy couple married three years after initially meeting in 2017, pictured. Krystle admitted she regularly gets mistaken for Ben’s daughter
The whole family visited Disney World in Orlando a couple of years ago. Ben and Krystle have now been married for five years
Ben, who is a business owner, recalls: ‘We were desperate for a nanny at the time. I was working and had full custody so I needed someone to look after the kids.
‘We hired Krystle and she was honestly the worst nanny we had ever had! Her cooking was terrible, her cleaning of the house was terrible and she was terrible at laundry.
‘Soon after we hired her, I spoke to my daughter Francesca about how Krystle was not doing a good job and how I was paying her for nothing.
Krystle with Ben and their children when Frankie, now 22, graduated from high school a couple of years back
Krystle with her boys! Ben admitted the nanny was terrible as a caretaker, but that he loved to see how happy she made her kids
The couple on their big day in 2017. After he told his eldest daughter that Krystle was not good at her job, Frankie begged him not to fire her
‘But Francesca cried and begged me not to fire her. She said that Krystle was really nice and she was making her feel like a little girl again.
‘That definitely caught my attention. Krystle wasn’t a good domestic caretaker but I loved that she was making my kids happy.
‘I spoke to Krystle very little at the start. I didn’t want to have that personal relationship with her because I had hired her as the nanny and I wanted it to be professional.
Krystle, pictured left with Kashton and Frankie and Sal on a night out, was shocked when Ben proposed to her on a gondola in Venice, right
Purple reign! The family looking their best shortly after Krystle and Ben’s wedding. Krystle admitted she did not like Ben when they first met
‘But I became attracted to Krystle when I saw her dressed up to go out one day. I was like “Ben don’t go there!” But the seed was planted.
‘We started speaking more and I invited her and her son for Christmas day and that’s when we really became close.’
Krystle – who is a Beauty Industry Professional as well as being a mother and step-mother says: ‘We didn’t like each other when we first met – I hated Ben if I’m honest. But over time, we started talking and then he invited me and son over at Christmas.
Krystle was swayed after Ben bought Christmas presents for her son and she realised he was a nice guy, she said
Looking golden! The family-six love to dress up for special occasions and do family photoshoots
‘I wasn’t going to show up but the kids begged me to come. When I came over on Christmas Eve, I was touched by all the presents Ben had bought for my son. That was a turning point – I realized he was a nice guy.
‘After Christmas, the kids went to Florida to see family and I text him late at night to see how the kids were. We ended up texting and eventually went on a date.
‘We kept our relationship a secret from the kids for a long time because we wanted to figure out what we were.
The couple admitted they kept their relationship secret from their kids for a long time while they figured out what they were
Out with the younger kids. Krystle admitted she found it very exciting to date her boss in the early days
Krystle and Ben with their children on their wedding day in 2017. Frankie and Julianna were Krystle’s bridesmaid
One happy blended family! Their children played a central role in Ben and Krystle’s wedding day
Krystle, pictured with Julianna on her graduation day, is extremely close to her step-children after working as their nanny for some time before becoming their dad’s girlfriend
Frankie and Julianna, left, hitting the town with their step-mother. Only seven years separate Frankie and Krystle in age, and she is only ten years older than Julianna
Now that the couple are married, Ben revealed Krystle is the responsible one who likes to stay home, while he likes to party
‘It was definitely exciting dating my boss initially. The whole time, Ben and I were like “What are we doing?”. I had never done anything like that before!
‘The kids caught on to our relationship when Ben suddenly took hold of my hand in the car and they just screamed.’
The couple have opposite personalities to what you would expect from their ages.
Ben says: ‘I like to party and stay out more than Krystle. She calls herself a grandma. So it’s the opposite to what you would expect.
‘Krystle is really responsible and looks after everything in our family now.
‘I definitely don’t look for a nanny or a secretary myself anymore though – Krystle hires anyone I need now.’
Frankie and Krystle. The nanny was bad at her job and only got to stay on because Frankie begged her dad not to let her go
Ben and Krystl admitted they accidentally revealed they were dating to their children when Ben took his nanny’s hand while driving
Krystle is as close to her step-daughter Julianna, left, than she is to her son from another relationship Kashton
The family in a black-and-white portrait taken some years ago. Krystle is now in charge of hiring the household’s employees
The blended family from Long Island having a blast together during a trip to Disney World in Orlando
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